Night of the Ball
by sunchaser116589
Summary: Daine and many others go to a large ball. Not a good summery, sorry. Numair, Alanna, Daine, Cloud, and many others. Saftey rated T.
1. Chapter 1

High she flew, soaring through the sky, wind whistling through her feathers. Her sharp eyes caught the flashes of silver moving swiftly through the wide stream in the horse's paddock. With a quick adjustment of her tail, she dove, headed straight for the oblivious fish…

"Daine!"

Startled, she brought her mind to the ground where her body was patiently waiting.

Opening her eyes she noticed a few feathers had started to grow upon her skin, and quickly reversed them. She glanced around, wondering who was calling her.

Cloud stood behind her, an impatient look in her stormy eyes.

"What's wrong?" the girl asked, worried.

The pony snorted. "Nothing is wrong, but you were in the eagle for a long time, and dinner will be starting in an hour. Alanna and Numair both said they expected you to attend, and you can not go to the ball like that." She replied, glancing disdainfully at the young mage's dirty breeches and tangled hair.

The girl sighed, rolling to her feet. "Eagles are so thrilling to ride on…" she muttered wistfully. "Oh well, I suppose I'd better get cleaned up. Although I don't think I should really have to go. I'm not really that important…"

The grey mare rolled her eyes. Her human would never learn that she was needed more than she thought.

She walked with Daine as far as the stables, and halted, letting the girl continue on to her rooms.

She took a bath, and she had just finished putting on her best breeches and a clean, red tunic, when there was a knock on the door.

"It's open!" she called, curiously looking at the door while lacing her collar up.

Alanna stepped in, clad in a beautiful dark grey dress. The material looked soft and shiny, and fit perfectly. The woman looked as beautiful as ever, and Daine felt a tinge of good-natured envy at the sight.

"If I have to wear a dress, so do you." The knight said firmly, pulling a pale blue dress out from behind her.

"But…" Daine began, taking a step backwards, hoping to ward off the present.

Shaking her head, Alanna grinned. "No arguments. It is to be a very important party, and everyone will be dressed to impress. I had this dress made and you are going to put it on now."

She thrust it at the girl and pushed her behind the changing screen.

Daine sighed, knowing she was no match for the Lioness's famously stubborn ways, and pulled the dress over her head before stepping out to let Alanna button it up.

The knight nodded and gave a satisfied smile. "You look lovely! This dress is the latest style, and suits you nicely."

Alanna quickly straightened the skirts and brushed the girl's hair, even putting a touch of face paint on.

With a delighted grin, she finally let Daine look in her mirror. The girl stared in shock. "Er, don't you think the neckline is a bit low?" she asked self-consciously. The lady in the mirror looked composed, yet pretty. Her neck was long and her skin seemed flawless. It made the most of her bust line and on her second inspection, Daine decided it was entirely appropriate.

Alanna gave her a pitying look. "No, of course it's not too low. And you look just fine, don't you think?"

Daine had to agree. "But isn't this a bit much for a little ball? Thayet throws them all the time, and I've never had to get dressed up like this before."

Alanna stared at her. "Why would you think I'd be wearing a dress for a stupid little ball? This party will be full of special people. Thayet likes to show off the castle to those dignitaries once a years and wants all of us to look the part. Everyone will be there. Jon forced me to come this year, and Numair will be wearing that heavy black robe of his. Even the horses will be groomed just for this night. There will be dancing and more. And I'm going to hate every minute, but there's nothing I can do about it."

"Well," Daine said after a second, smiling up at her testy friend," I suppose we'd better get walking."


	2. Chapter 2

Alanna shrugged, and they both stepped out the door. As Alanna slipped by the wall, the girl noticed the outline of a knife at her wrist, hidden under the fabric of her sleeve, and she grinned. She should have known that the knight wouldn't go without a weapon. When Alanna looked at her questioningly, Daine just shook her head, and they continued walking to the ballroom.

As they got closer, she noticed more people milling around, or arriving, or just plain socializing. Carriages pulled by stunning horses gave way to even more stunningly dressed party-goers. The gentlemen wore dark clothes, with fancy embroidery, and the ladies wore fine dresses, with swishing skirts, and lots of face paint. There was excitement in the air, and everyone was effected by it. The people looked magnificent. Daine shrank slightly, knowing she didn't look as fine as everyone else. A new dress didn't make up for years of practice wearing it.

When they finally got to the entrance, they noticed dinner was about to start. The pair quickly glanced around, and found Numair and the Baron, George, sitting together near the throne table. Alanna sat on George's far side, leaving Daine to sit next to Numair. The mage was talking to a women dressed in pale pink silk. She held a fan in her hand, and was waving it around in a manner that reminded Daine of a distressed pigeon.

"Good evening, Numair," She said as she sat, trying to place her skirt gracefully around the chair. The women broke off, giving a loud sniff, then spun to harass the dinner partner on her other side. Numair turned to her with a smile that froze when he took a good look at her. Just as she was beginning to become uncomfortable, he said," Hello magelet. I see you thought to put a dress on. It was good of you to think of it, because you would have looked very out of place in your breeches."

Daine shrugged, and George and Alanna grinned. "Alanna made me wear it, otherwise, I _would _have shown up in breeches. It would have been more comfortable anyway." She glanced down at herself with a rueful look.

Numair smiled. "It's not very comfortable in this black thing either", he replied, tugging on his black Mage's robe.

Daine laughed, knowing he disliked wearing the robes very often. As well as being extremely heavy, Numair didn't feel the need to announce his status by wearing the robes.

Just then, servants brought forward all the food, piling the tables with it. In few spots could you even see the tablecloths. Roasted meat of all kinds was placed in front of the guests. Daine was grateful that the meat was carefully placed out of her reach. She looked at the head of the table, towards King Jon, and smiled at the King's wink.

Daine and the rest of the guests filled their plates and started eating. After a few minutes, the great doors to the hall swung open with a clang. Surprised, they all turned to look.

A small,l reddish dragon stood in the opening, chattering loudly. She turned towards the confused guards next to the door, and whistled. The doors swung shut again. Everyone sat silently.

Daine hurried forward and snatched up the dragon, carrying her back to her seat. Around her, murmurs began and she could feel eyes on her.

"Kitten," she hissed," don't play with the doors in front of everybody! It makes them nervous and the King is probably embarrassed at the disruption.

The dragon just gave a discontented hiss before stealing a strawberry from the girl's plate.

Daine sighed. "Here, have some grapes."

The red color of her scales faded to their normal color.

Daine carefully ignored the stares around her.

She heard the King call out, "Do not worry. It is just a baby dragon. Dinner should resume."

Although people kept stealing glances at the girl and dragon, the chit chat started again.

Numair leaned over to Daine, and she noticed a bright glint in his eyes. "Is Kit fine?"

Daine nodded. "I couldn't find her when we left. I thought she'd get here before dinner, but she says she was playing with some sparrows…"

Numair nodded and went back to his food.

After dessert, which Kitten insisted on standing on Daine's lap to eat, the guests stood up, and servants cleared away the tables. Musicians started playing lively tunes. Although many went onto the floor to dance, Daine and Kit drifted away, finding a small couch to sit in at the far end of the room. The walls looked cozy in the bright torch-light, and someone had added several blood-red curtains to the windows.

The two sat down and watched everyone dancing, not caring at all to join in.

Boys in fine clothes often stole glances at her and the dragon, but it wasn't until after a few songs that any came up to talk with her.

One in dark blue clothes, with short blonde hair and blue eyes came up. He sat in a couch next to her.

"Good day, fair lady. I am Parie de Fairen the fifth. You must just call me Parie". He paused, apparently not noticing Kitten, who was currently hiding under the couch, then added," And what might your name be?"

Daine blinked but gave a slight nod as he introduced himself. "I am Daine. It is good to meet you."

Parie took her unoffered hand and kissed it softly. "I am happy to meet you too. Would you care to dance?" he asked.

Daine shook her head, giving a polite smile. "No thank you. I will stay right here and watch."

Parie smiled. "It's no fun to watch. Come and dance with me."

Again she shook her head. "No, thank you." She replied more firmly.

His smile took a sharp edge. "I really must insist", he said as he gave a pull on her hand which was still tightly held in his own.

She glared up at him. "I said no thank you. _I _must insist that you let go now."

His response was to pull her out of her chair and attempt to shove her toward the door that sat a few feet away.

Daine gave him an unbelieving look. Did he mean to try to rob her right here at the party? What kind of riffraff did the palace guards let in? She stood firmly, her muscles strong after years of archery. "You have one final warning to let go of me now." She said in sharp voice, trying to push away the fear that was rising up. She knew it would be hard for him to hurt her, but she did not know if he would resort to threatening her with a weapon, and unarmed against a knife, she would be in some trouble.

"You will learn not to disobey your betters." He growled, fingers tightening on her wrist.

Suddenly, Kitten, Alanna, and Numair stood by her elbow.

"Is there a problem here?" Alanna asked, her voice sharp and her violet eyes burning.

Parie blinked. "Of course not. This girl was trying to get me to go with her, and when I refused, she started to pull at me. I was only attempting to restrain her."

At this, Daine stiffened in disgust, and Kitten uttered a sharp sound, before stepping forward to nip his arm.

With a yelp, he let go of Daine and turned on Kitten with a furious look.

Before the dragon could start to defend herself, and even before Numair and Alanna could move, Paco was on his back, a confused and shocked expression on his face.

Daine stood calmly before him, a fist raised slightly from her side.

"You hit me!" he said in a squeaky voice, astonished that a mere girl, one whom he thought was an easy target, had knocked him to the ground.

Her smile was razor sharp. "Yes, I did. And if you aren't gone in the next ten seconds, I'll do it again and let Kitten at you."

With a glare, he slunk quickly through the door. Noticing a black spark in the corner of her eye, she saw Numair get the attention of a guard, and Alanna quickly signaled him to follow the boy.

When the guard was gone, her friends turned to look at her.

"Nice aim." Alanna said. Daine tried to smile in response, but she wasn't sure she quite made it.

Numair stepped forward. "Are you alright?" he asked, worry wrinkling his brow.

"Of course I'm alright." She replied, sinking relieved onto the couch again. Numair stepped to the edge of the couch and placed his hands on the armrest, squeezing until his knuckles were white.

Alanna looked at her arm, and except for the handprints on it, there was no damage.

Daine made a face and rubbed it.

"She's not hurt." Alanna reported.

Numair nodded and gave her an intense look. "What happened? We know you didn't want to go with him."

Her face took on a barely noticeable blush. "Nothing really. He wanted me to dance, and I didn't want to. So he tried to pull me to the door. Then you all came, and I suppose you know the rest."

Alanna nodded sympathetically. "He must have convinced the guards he was one of the guests, and expected to have an easy night picking off some excess jewelry and money. I doubt he was one of George's, but I'll have him look into it anyway.

Numair was angry. "You're lucky Kitten found us. There's no telling what would have happened if we hadn't shown up", he suddenly snapped at Daine.

Daine looked up at him, surprised. "I'm glad that Kit found you, but even if she hadn't, she and I can hold our own."

Alanna placed a hand on his arm. "Calm down Numair. I'm just as annoyed as you are, but we both know that Daine would have been fine. She can take care of herself. It could have happened to anyone."

Numair let out a long sigh, before releasing the couch and standing straight.

"I'm fine," Daine said, breaking the silence," go back to dancing or whatever, and don't worry about me."

When Numair blinked at her and opened his mouth to say something, Alanna shoved him back towards the dancing floor.

"Go on, I'm bored of this party already. I'll stay with Daine."

He once again started to complain, but a quick glare from the redhead stopped him, and, shaking his head, he was quickly lost among the other guests.

"So," Alanna said, taking a seat next to Daine," I suppose you want to sit on your couch for awhile?"

Daine nodded, looking down at her hands.

"Fine, I get to glare away all the handsome men. It'll be the most fun I'll have this evening, what with George busy talking to some Scandren investors."

Alanna was rewarded with a quiet giggle from Daine.

They sat easily in silence, except for the occasional shifting as Alanna would turn her fiery eyes to anyone who wanted to walk up to them.

Daine broke it, saying," Numair's gotten more protective than normal."

Alanna shrugged. "He's your teacher, isn't he? He feels responsible for you, and I know he cares about you too. We all do. I wouldn't worry about it, Daine. He's just looking out for you."

Daine nodded, and turned to watch the twirling dresses, and shiny shoes on the dance floor spin about.


	3. Chapter 3

After a bit, Kitten got up to snatch a fruit basket, and brought it over to Daine and Alanna. They thanked her and occasionally picked at it.

Daine became immersed in the music, and the dance steps, but there was no way on earth that she would get up and dance. She hadn't stepped to one dance the whole time at court, and she never planned to, at least, not any time soon.

She contented herself at watching Numair talk and dance with numerous court ladies, in their large skirts, hanging over him, making him throw his head back and laugh, carefree.

Alanna pulled herself to her feet. "Privy." She explained as she slipped out a door. She would be back in a few minutes, Daine knew.

Suddenly, a rather frazzled looking boy, of about 15, made it to the edge of the crowd near her. He looked around, and finding no other open couch, he sat it the one next to Daine.

Perhaps I should just take that couch outside before more males decide to sit in it, she mused to herself.

"Hello," the boy said," I am Seth, I suppose you don't care to know my full title."

Daine looked up at him. He was watching with warm friendly eyes. "Hello Seth, it's nice to meet you. I am Daine, just Daine."

He nodded and grinned. "It is almost nice to meet you."

After a few moments of silence on their part, Daine opened her mouth to say something, but was distracted by a loud call. "_Seth! Seth! Where are you?" _

She raised an eyebrow and Seth rolled his eyes. "My father is a buisinessman, and one of his client's daughters wished to come with me to this ball. He accepted for me, because he supposed it would make his client more obliging to seal their next deal. But she has been sticking to me like a burr all night. A perfectly nice girl, just a bit too enthusiastic."

At this, a large girl with red cheeks and a fluffy dress appeared. She had a happy smile on her face that grew bigger upon finding Seth.

"Oh there you are!" she cried as she raced over to them.

Seth sighed loud enough for only Daine to hear, then smiled and got to his feet, giving a nod to her as the girl dragged him off.

Daine smothered a giggle, and looked up as a shadow passed near her, expecting Alanna. But to her faint surprise, it was Numair dancing past. This time he held a slender lady in a purple dress, twirling gracefully.

She was surprised to find that a small, sharp feeling stirred whenever she noticed him dancing with a new lady. It left her a bit confused, but she pushed away the feeling, looking around for Alanna.

A short while later, Alanna appeared, saying she had been detoured by a peddler selling sword scabbards, and she had bought a new one for herself.

As the music slowed a bit, the King stood up.

Beside her, Alanna sighed. "This is the 'fun' part of the evening. Hopefully George will get over here in time."

"What?" Daine asked, but Alanna had no time to answer before King Jonathon spoke.

"It is now time for the Gathering Dance. Everyone find a partner, I don't want to see anyone on the side lines", he called with a happy smile as he grabbed Thaybet by the hand.

"We have until the song ends to find someone to dance with. Everyone has to dance. It's tradition" Alanna said. George appeared by her side with a grin.

"But I don't want to dance. I refuse to dance!" Daine protested. "Besides, I highly doubt I can find someone to dance with. I bet there is an odd number of people, and so one person will have to sit out. I volunteer to be that person."

As she babbled, the knight and Baron looked at her thoughtfully.

"Of course you will dance. Now go and find someone, or stand there and let someone find you", they said giving her a shove towards to crowd before walking off together.

She scowled, and, once they were out of sight, stood by the couch, innocently hidden behind a large plant.

Meanwhile, the song was half over.

Numair, who had almost managed to forget about his magelet by now, was looking around searching for her. Who was she going to dance with?

Many ladies came up and asked to dance, but he politely declined, not wanting to do accept until he found Daine to make sure she was still all right.

Exasperated, he used his magic to sense hers, and finally found her at the couch.

"Daine, what are you doing? You're supposed to dance!"

Daine shook her head. "I am not dancing."

He sighed. "Why ever not?"

"Because I don't know how to dance, I don't like to dance, I don't want to dance. Is that enough reasons?"

"No. Come on. Unless you want the King to order you in front of everyone, which I've often seen him do, you are going to dance. Now, who can you dance with?"

He looked around, ignoring her scowling face. But everyone appeared taken. Most of the boys had remembered Alanna's scowl, and a few had seen Parie's fate. Although many of them would have liked to dance with the pretty girl, they were all too scared, and besides, others had asked them first.

Even the ladies looked at him sourly, probably thinking he had chosen to dance with Daine.

"See?" Daine replied, a relieved note in her voice," there's no one left. I'm sitting on this couch, and then I'm flying out the door."

Numair took on a stubborn look. "I want to dance, and now you are going to have to dance with me. Besides, we need to get you over your fear of dancing, so next time you can find someone else to dance with."

Daine blinked at him, then growled quietly. Numair raised an eyebrow, but refused to back down. He dragged her gently to the floor, wondering sullenly why the other ladies ignored him. Deep down though, he realized that he almost preferred to dance with Daine, and it was that thought that he pushed away quickly.


	4. Chapter 4

The brisk song the musicians were playing came to an end.

The King glanced around, then nodded at the musicians, who picked up a slightly slower tune.

Everyone started stepping and twirling.

Numair and Daine stood a good foot and a half apart. Daine stepped robotically to the rhythm, keeping her eyes down on Numair's feet in the hopes that she wouldn't step on anything.

Numair raised their hands up, and tried to spin Daine.

The WildMage glanced up in surprise before easily spinning. Daine grudgingly realized that she was glad to have Numair as a dance partner. He knew what he was doing and had no problems teaching her to move like the others. She was delighted to find that it was not as hard to dance as she thought.

Unlike most of the dancers, they were silent.

Before long, Daine began to get the hang of the dance. She twirled and stepped as good as the best of them, her skirts ruffling and moving gracefully. Numair smiled as her skirt swished around her slender ankles.

She added a few steps of her own, without even thinking. A slight hop here, or a small, quick shuffle there… Numair kept easily with her, surprised by the extra grace the young woman showed.

_I might have to dance with her again… _He thought to himself, before quickly shaking his head.

At Daine's questioning glance, he just gave a slight smile. The hesitant smile she gave back made him content.

At last, the song came to an end.

Numair let go of one hand, and gave a low bow.

Daine had a slight blush, unsure about the feeling she got dancing to the music with Numair, but she curtseyed beautifully in response, a skill that had not been lost when she started stopped wearing dresses everyday.

"You dance wonderfully! I still can't believe you've never danced properly before this," Numair said, stepping closer so she could hear better.

Daine shrugged. "I don't know about that, but I suppose it was a bit of fun." She admitted.

Numair tilted his head, and looked down into her eyes. She looked steadily back, and he could see that she had enjoyed the dance just as much as he had.

Then, the king stepped up to his throne and cleared his throat loudly.

"There will be one more mandatory song!", he called out.

There were murmurs, but no one seemed too particularly unhappy about it.

Daine started walking back to her couch, but the mage tugged at her hand.

"Where do you think you're going magelet? You heard the King, and I have no intention of dancing by myself. Besides, that wasn't so bad now was it?"

Daine looked longingly towards her couch, but stepped back over to him. "All right. I suppose one last song won't hurt."

Together they stood, waiting for the music to begin. Daine noticed that Numair still held her hand

The musicians started playing a slow song, one you couldn't be expected to twirl too.

Daine blinked and shyly looked up at Numair, not knowing what to do now.

He sighed a bit, and grabbed a hand, placing one of hers on his shoulder, and placing his own on her waist.

He could feel that she wasn't particularly relaxed, but he himself was a bit uptight too.

He swayed, and stepped a bit, and Daine copied him. They slowly turned it a circle, and Daine resumed watching their feet.

A quiet yelp made Numair refocus on the girl.

His student had accidentally bumped into one of the 'dignified ladies'. The lady sneered and gave her a shove before waltzing away with her nose high in the air.

Daine fell against him, before regaining her balance.

"Sorry." She muttered.

"It's quite alright." He replied," I would have had trouble maneuvering around her ample rear end too."

Daine eyes shot up to his, and giggled.

He finally felt her muscles unclench, and they danced together, closer .


	5. Chapter 5

Suddenly Daine faltered and lost her balance again

"Daine, are you alright?" Numair asked, gripping her shoulders for a moment to steady her.

"Yes, I'm just a bit dizzy. I've had a headache for a few hours. I'm sure it will go away soon..."

He snorted, unconvinced "Here, lets go sit down…"

But Daine just shook her head. "No, I don't mind. I'd like to keep dancing."

Despite himself, the tall mage smiled. His magelet was so stubborn sometimes.

"Fine, but I want you to tell me if it gets worse, all right?"

Daine shrugged and nodded.

Numair put both hands on her waist, to steady her while they danced.

Still a bit dizzy, Daine decided to rest her head, her forehand pressed gently to his chest.

The mage blinked, but didn't protest. He shoved away some thoughts that were creeping up, telling himself that Daine was simply trying to regain her balance.

Soon though, the song was over, and a livelier tune filled the air.

"Numair? Can we go outside? I think I'll feel better in the fresh air, away from all these people."

He nodded, and they walked out a door, following a hallway until it let out into a dark garden.

Daine plopped onto a stone bench stood just to the side of the door.

"Are you sure that you will be alright?"

She grinned, her eyes closed. "Yes, I've already told you I'll be fine." She was touched, as always, by his concern. Numair slid gracefully onto the open seat next to her, and the girl pressed her shoulder to his.

They sat in silence, Numair looking up at the stars and searching for constellations. Daine concentrated on sitting up right, but before long, her head ache had subsided enough for her to send her magic out and to see what animals lurked close by.

To her surprise, there was a smallish black bear nearby. The bear was curious about the beehives brimming with honey that were spread throughout the garden.

Reaching out, she touched his mind.

_Hello, brother._

_Hello sister, the bear replied, surprised to hear a voice speaking to him._

_I've never been in a bear before. Might I ride with you?_

_What would I have to do?_

_Nothing, I'll do all the work._

_Allright, then._

Daine eagerly slipped into the bear's mind. She was immediately assaulted by new scents; honey, the different trees and plants in the garden, and even the fish in the scattered ponds.

They loped along, winding their way back to the edge of the forest. Although Daine would have happily continued to his den, a sharp prick of magic made her drop back into herself.

"What?" she yelped, looking around, confused.

Numair sat with his back to her, holding out his black robe.

"Just look down", he said calmly, his voice betraying nothing.

She rolled her eyes and glanced down, suddenly realizing that she wore only thing she wore was the badger's claw.

"Oh." She murmured, snatching Numair's robe and wrapping it around herself.

The mage turned hesitantly around, not sure if the girl was covered yet.

"Why did you turn into a bear?" he asked.

She shrugged. "There was a bear over there, and I was riding with him. I suppose I started shape changing, and my clothes were destroyed?" she said the last part in a question.

Numair nodded. "That's what it seems."

Daine shivered, suddenly cold. The night seemed to have gotten chilly already.

At Numair's glance, she clarified," It's a bit cold now", ending with another shiver.

The mage rolled his eyes.

"Is your head better?"

"A little bit; it's not too bad now."

Her teeth started chattering.

Numair knew she did not like being cold. He himself was starting to feel the freezing air. The mage felt a strong urge to pick his student up and hold her, to try and chase away the cold. He resisted for a moment, but Daine's chattering teeth and her stubborn refusal to go back inside to find warmth, made him scoop her up. He swung her legs over his lap and set her down, arms around her to keep her securely in place.

She gave him a puzzled look but a smile hovered on her lips.

"There, now we can both be a little bit warmer," he said. He felt slightly uncomfortable; after all, this seemed mildly improper, did it not?

She just sighed contentedly, and leaned against him again. Daine rested her head against his chest, nose at the edge of his collar bone. If she listened closely, she could hear his heart beat, and the sound lulled her into a drowsy state.

They sat there for some time, until he thought that she must be asleep by now, so calmly and quietly was she breathing.

He bent his head and kissed her gently on the forehead, brushing back the hair that had fallen across her face.

He jumped slightly when she opened her eyes and caught his gaze in her own.

The tall mage was lost in her eyes, with her feelings expressed in them, others hidden underneath. Without quite realizing what he was doing, his head was bent down again, although this time, his aim was for her lips.

Suddenly, he snapped his head back, not quiet reaching his target.

Daine sat upright, and looked at him again, waiting for an explanation.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking. You're my _student_. I… forgive me. I do not know what possessed me to…" he trailed off, his feathers rumpled for once.

Daine tilted her head, looking at him oddly. Then, she twisted slightly on his lap to face him, bringing arms up to deliberately place her palms on his chest. Slowly, she let them fall downs across his ribs, noting for the first time to dimensions of his torso.

"Why?"

"I just told you! You're my student, and I'm your teacher, and…" Again he stopped, still unnerved by what had almost happened only moments ago.

"I don't understand, Numair. _Love's fair wondrous, _why can't we just try?"

"Because…" he tried again, but this time Daine wouldn't let him finish.

Daine's face was so close to his own, and he only realized now that it was coming closer.

Before he could tell his limbs to move, Daine had kissed him.

Her lips were so soft, and he was surprised by how strong they were. But what surprised him more was the _feeling_. It took all over his will power not to put his arms around her waist and pull her closer to him. As it was, he noticed that he was kissing her back. He finally managed to pull himself away, where he sat gasping quietly.

"_Daine!" _he scolded, but she knew he didn't mean it.

The girl was a bit shocked herself. She too was gasping, steadying herself with one hand on Numair's shoulder.

"I still don't think this is right. After all, I'm practically twenty years older than you!"

The girl rolled her eyes. "I still don't see what you're getting so worked up about."

Numair fretted to himself for a bit longer. Daine continued to sit patiently on his lap, absently rubbing her nose on the base of his collarbone.

"I can't think when you do that!" he snapped, suddenly aware that he had a girl on his lap clad only in a robe.

Daine shrugged. "What's the harm in trying it?"

He was about to argue, then realized it was pointless.

"The ball is over. Let's get you home and warm, and then we'll talk again."

She nodded and stepped onto the ground. A second later, his robe was on the ground and a falcon was flying towards home.


	6. Chapter 6

Numair sighed and watched the bird until it was swallowed up by darkness.

He bent and snatched up his robe, folding it carefully and tucking it under his arm, before starting up to his rooms.

Finally reaching them, he changed into a simple pair of breeches and a dark tunic, not bothering with his boots. He looked around for Daine, but quickly realized she must have gone to her own chambers to wait.

He started off towards them, but as he reached out to knock on the door, he could hear her talking. His conscience was ignored when he put his ear to the door.

"I know, I'm sorry Kit, but my head hurt and I had to go outside", he could hear Daine saying.

The dragon chattered in response.

"Hand me the red breeches, please."

Kitten emitted more chatterings.

"I agree, I don't see what he's getting so worked up about."

Before the dragon could respond, Numair knocked on the door.

"It's open!"

He stepped in and focused on Daine.

They were both silent for a few seconds, before Kit broke it.

She gave a high screech that made both the humans flinch, before going over to Numair and giving him a shove towards the girl

He stumbled forward, and she bit her lip to suppress her laughter.

"Be nice Kitten", she scolded, although it didn't sound very sharp.

"Do you love me?" Daine asked abruptly after he had righted himself.

He blinked, and hesitated. "I… I don't think I should say…" Did he love her? Of course, she was his student, and he cared for her. She also was his friend, and he loved her for that. But did he love her as she meant?

Daine glared. "It's a simple question, and you are trying my patience."

He was once again surprised by how strong she could be, and before he could stop himself, he answered, "Yes."

Her face softened. "I love you too, although I didn't really realize it until earlier."

A soft meow interrupted Numair's reply.

Daine's head turned sharply and she ran to the door, opening it and picking up something.

When she returned to her bed, a calculating look on her face, he realized what it was: a cat pulling a still kitten by it's side.

"Numair, will you take the cat so I can get to work on the kitten?" she asked.

He nodded and swiftly took the cat, letting it sit on his lap, tail flicking in distress.

He watched as the girl settled the kitten, then placed her hands gently on it and spread out her magic.


	7. Chapter 7

Numair absently stroked the cat, intently watching his magelet.

The girl stayed motionless, silent. After a minute, he could actually see the kitten being healed, with his eyes alone. It was in the way that his ribs were popped back into place, the way his quiet breathing grew stronger, more regular, the way he looked more like a kitten than a ball of fur. Most importantly, it was in the way that the cat grew calmer, and the girl's face softened, if it _did _look a bit tired from working the magic.

A time later, Daine looked up, placing the groggy kitten in a basket by the fire.

The cat on Numair's lap stirred and leapt over to the kitten, starting to wash it.

Daine smiled, and said a few words to the cats, letting them stay the night.

She tried to get to her feet, but her joints cracked, and she winced at the soreness that came from being still so long.

Numair got up, his own body protesting, for he too had been still, though not as unmoving as the young mage had been.

"She was hurt bad. A man kicked the kitten, and although the mother used her claws, it took awhile for the man to go away. She dragged him here, to me. She knew I'd probably be able to help her. And I did, obviously. She'll be fine now…" her sentence trailed off.

Suddenly, the girl sat back down on her bed and hid her eyes with her hands.

Numair blinked, and stepped over to her.

"Are you alright?" he asked, confused.

She shrugged, and started talking, her words muffled.

"It just gets to me sometimes. The humans can be so cruel. They don't care or understand animals, just because they can't hear them talk. And the animals think I can solve everything. I can, sometimes, but I can't fix everything!" She broke off as silent tears made their way down her cheeks.

She turned away from the tall mage, disgusted at herself for blubbering over a few foolish people and her own self pity.

But the mage sat down next to her and rested his head on top of hers, silently holding her until she got herself under control once more. He could feel her breathing at the base of his throat, and the feeling he got from that almost overpowered his distress over the young mage's sadness. He longed to take this weight off of her shoulders.

"It's just… the People don't think like humans. Not really anyway. They don't understand the reasons why people do things, things for greed, black mail, money... The only thing they really understand is the need for survival. Court affairs and other uselass protocols like that they just don't get. I'm not explaining this very well… Just understand that the People are different and I hate it when people come over and abuse them, like that did with Peek, that kitten over there." She halted a second, before starting again, and he took the opportunity to kiss the top of her head.

"I don't mind helping them."

She leaned back to look into his face with a slight grin. "How is it that I'm always telling you things about the People, and then assuming that you will actually understand it?"

Now it was his turn to smile. "I may not understand some of what you say, but it's good enough that you trust me to tell all this too, and I can do my best to understand."


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: I don't own Daine, Numair, Tortall, ect. Tamora Pierce does.**

**A//N: Hi again! Sorry I haven't updated for awhile. I just couldn't think of what to type. Actually, I'm not sure what I'm going to type right now, but hopefully it will turn out alright. Thanks to everyone who reviewed; I really appreciate it.**

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_She glanced up at him with a slight grin. "How is it that I'm always telling you things, and then thinking that you will actually understand it."I_

_Now it was his turn to smile. "I may not understand some of what you say, some of the time, but it's good enough that you trust me to tell all this too, and I can do my best to understand."_

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They sat silently for awhile, Daine sorting her thoughts, and Numair getting his own sorted out also. They didn't notice how much time was going by, and they both fell asleep, Daine in the mage's arms.

A loud croak from Kitten startling them both from their slumber.

"What's wrong, Kit?" Daine asked, raising her head and looking around for her.

The dragon shuffled over to the kittens.

"What?" Numair, too, wondered what the dragon wanted.

" It's morning." Daine replied, heaving herself to her feet and grabbing some sausage from her small ice-box in the corner and giving it to Kit and the cats. "I think we fell asleep…" she trailed off

Numair stood up, shaking the wrinkles out of his shirt.

"Well, we can eat, and then I'd like to go for a ride. Will you come with me?"

Daine grinned. "Of course I will. Cloud hasn't been out of her pasture for a few days, and she's probably ready to get out and run."

"Well, I'm not sure Spots and I are up to much running, but the weather will be nice."

Numair went to his own quarters to change into riding gear and to find some breakfast for the two of them, while Daine fed the rest of the contents of the ice box to Kit and her guests.

They met up half an hour later at the stables. Daine quickly helped Numair finish with his large gelding before hopping onto Cloud. The girl and pony both winced as the tall man clambered onto the good natured horse.

They started out for a long ride, free for the day, because today was one of the rare days where they were both officially off duty for a day.

The sun was shining, the birds were singing, and Daine could hear the voices of all the animals who ran around in the daylight.

It was still early in the morning, because Kitten had woken them up a bit after sun up.

They were quiet for awhile, content to just be in each other presence.

"Numair?" Daine said, breaking that silence. "when I first met you, after you shifted from the bird and all, why did you take such an interest in me? You couldn't have known I had magic then."

The mage just grinned. "I took an interest in you _because_ I knew you had some sort of magic. Do you think any old person could have found me when I fell from the sky? Even a seasoned tracker couldn't have found me as fast as you, a young anonymous girl, did, if he could have even found me at all." Here he paused a moment. "I felt you, and your magic, through my stupor then, which is no small thing. And then I got to know you…"

He stopped when Daine quickly threw up and hand and brought her bow down from behind her back. Numair threw her a questioning look.

"Spidren," was all she could say before the beasts were upon them.

Daine shot three arrows, and each hit it's moving target perfectly. Numair threw black fire at another two, and they fell hissing to the ground. He whirled when he heard a sharp yelp and a following piercing whinny, turning in time to see his magelet dragged off by one of them.

He tried to run after the retreating blond-haired thing, but the rest of the leering group blocked his way.

He kept firmly in the saddle, holding onto Spot's reins tightly so the frightened animal shifted in place.

With a quiet growl, the mage unleashed a torrent of black lightning at them, instantly zapping the creatures and allowing him to run after the girl.

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**((A//N: Ugh, sorry people, but this is all I can give you right now. If I'm not too lazy tomorrow, I'll finish this chapter. REVIEW PLEASE!))**


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I don't own Daine, Numair, Tortall, ect. Tamora Pierce does.**

**A//N: Apparently I was too lazy to finish the chapter right away. Actually, I forgot that I had to finish the chapter, and didn't remember until just now. **

**Hmm… I think my mother is talking about me on the phone; never a good sign… Ooh! I'm going to the horse now! Although I'm not sure if that's good, seeing as I slipped off the cow and onto the sand yesterday… Lol,**

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_He kept firmly in the saddle, holding onto Spot's reins tightly so the frightened animal shifted in place._

_With a quiet growl, the mage unleashed a torrent of black lightning at them, instantly zapping the creatures and allowing him to run after the girl._

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Daine snagged onto branches and loose vines, trying to slow the spidren down. It wasn't working well, though, because the spidren were strong.

Her brain worked as she tried to collect herself for a shape change.

"So," the blond-headed one said as he tossed her into a large web that hung in between two large trees," I don't suppose you're one of the weaklings who beg and cry, are you? They make it more fun for us, at least before we eat them anyway."

Her response was to spit at him, attempting to change, but the web refused to release her, no matter what form she took on.

"I say we eat her now!" The brown-haired one said, almost drooling.

The blond one scowled. "You heard what the master said; she is to be alive!"

"Oh come on, I don't care anymore! She looks so tasty…" The brown headed one lunged for Daine, was stopped quickly by pink spider silk that the blond had shot at him.

Realizing that she had a bit longer to live, she drooped her head to take quick breaths to calm down.

"Silence!" the blond growled to the shrieking spidren," You know better than to go against what the master sa--…"

He couldn't finish his statement, however, because he was blasted by black mage fire. The same happened to the blond. It was suddenly silent, and the web holding onto Daine disappeared.

Numair stood facing away from the girl, his head bowed, holding onto his staff with faintly trembling hands.

"Numair…" the girl croaked, getting to her feet and walking over to the mage.

The tall mage gave a start, and looked wildly around.

"Daine!" he cried as he spotted her, picking her up and giving her a great bear hug.

"I thought you were dead! The spidren took you, and, well, their prisoners don't stay 'kicking' very long…" he said, trailing off.

"I hurt too much to be dead." She replied.

Numair shifted her so he could take a good look at her face, and once he did, he kissed her.

Daine's hands found their way behind his neck.

After a few seconds off this, he reluctantly tried to pull away, only to have Daine pull him back down.

The mage smiled against her lips, and continued on.

_Daine… _Cloud called.

_Go away, I'm busy. _She replied, pressing Numair even closer.

_I have eyes you know. This is great and all, but Alanna is coming._

Daine gave a mental sigh, and stepped back, standing upright on the ground once more.

Numair gave her a questioning look.

"People are coming." She explained.

He nodded and let her lean on him as they made their way towards the direction the King's Champion was coming from.

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**((A//N: No one bite me, I already know that the chapter didn't come out the way that I'd hoped it would. I'm going back now to fix some of it…**

**Well, I didn't fix much, sorry. I'm not in a terribly 'fluffy' mood, but there had to be fluff… I promise that sometime I will give you a fluffy chapter. And if some of my readers hate fluff, then… well, I can't really be rude, because then they wouldn't read at all and I'd be sad… so I'll just say to read it anyway.**

**Yep. Er, please REVIEW and be gentle, unless you hate me for some random reason.))**


	10. Chapter 10

**A//N: Ok friends/fans/people, I think I'm going to stop the story here. Daine and Numair 'found' each other, and now they shall live happily ever after… If, for another random reason, you want me to continue, you'll have to give me more ideas, because I am completely happy ending it here. As I'm sure most of you have noticed, it's been getting harder and harder for my chapters to flow and stuff. Anywho, I'd like to say thank you to anyone who reviewed/read my story. **

**Just incase any one cares, although I doubt most of you do, I have a few Tortall fanfics, and some Twilight/New Moon fanfics on my page-thing. **

**Thanks again everyone! **


	11. Chapter 11

UPDATE: Lol, wow, I haven't updated in awhile. Sorry! Didn't really see the point, and then my laptop blew up, and now I've got school and a job and no free time to even do my homework, much less take a few hours to type up something… Anyway, enough of my whining.

A few of you might remember a site I started called Twilight WildWood. I originally started it as a fanfiction site open only to fanfiction about Stephenie Meyer. It died because I kind of forgot about it, lol.

I've re-opened the site, updated it, re-designed it, added some new features, and opened the site to a bunch of authors. Tamora Pierce, Bruce Coville, Stephenie Meyer, ect. (There's a list on the site, but I'm not really concerned with people sticking to that list at the moment).

I'm looking for people willing to put their fanfiction up on the site. I'll take it down if it is really bad writing and things like that, but otherwise it is a lot like this fanfiction site we're on right now.

You might be wondering why I'm starting a new site then, right?

Well, my site will be a lot smaller, but I hope it will still be full of quality stories. You won't have to search thru thousands of silly stories just to find a few decent, well-written fanfiction pieces.

I hope my site will grow and people will enjoy visiting to see what new stories have been posted.

Right now I need some help starting the site.

I need authors. If you think you have some good, decent fanfiction, please go to .com and post it on the Fanfiction Center link. (You will have to join the site to do so. Just go to 'Subscribe and Fun' and join the TWW mailing list, which is really how people sign up.) It should be quick and easy.

I'm looking for someone who has the time to be a sort of Admin/Moderator. As much as I'd like to have the site all to myself, I don't have the time to advertise, update, and do 'quality control' inspections too.

If anyone is good with sites, you will be better than me. I like how the site is set up, but there are always a few changes that could be made to make it better.

I also need a researcher, if anyone wants to do that. I'd like to be able to keep tabs on popular authors, what books are coming out soon, appearances, ect. I have an 'Author News' page, but there isn't anything on it.

If you are interested in submitting a fanfiction, please go to: . com (just take the space out), become a member under 'Subscribe and Fun', then go to 'Fanfiction Center', make a new blog entry, and save it.

If you want to talk about anything else, either post on the forums (located at .com), make a comment to this new update, or email me.


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